Wow, it has been a seriously long time since I have posted here! Sorry!

I want to apologize for seemingly falling off the face of the earth without a word. I haven’t been trapped under a giant stack of Costco sized paper towels and my love of Costco hasn’t waned. Unfortunately, I haven’t won the lottery or anything exciting and cool like that either. It’s not the best excuse, but I’ve been really struggling with my RA (rheumatoid arthritis) for the last couple of years, which is why I needed to take a break from blogging originally. It has made it hard for me to be interested in blogging or doing much of anything. Luckily for me, the last few months I’ve been getting my health in check again and have even had the energy to do a bit of traveling (which is my other passion). I’ve started to get back to a place where I can get on with stuff that I really want to do, like work on AddictedToCostco. We’re also starting to plan our return to the United States after a wonderful (nearly) eight years in London.

I am definitely still planning to turn this blog into a discussion forum so that everyone can chat and share all kinds of Costco information – coupons, news, deals, location information, and more. My hope is to have that up and working before August.

Also, I feel I need to do say something in reaction to a very strange comment that someone posted recently (and I have deleted since it was just nonsense):

I do not, and have never, worked for Costco, nor has any member of my family. I am not paid millions by Costco or anyone else for writing this blog, though I certainly wish that were the case. I do not have any type of revenue deal with Costco and they do not advertise on my blog, unless they choose to target it via the Google advertising network which I do not control.

So, to end on a better note, and in case you missed it, Costco just opened in a new country: Iceland! Which I find truly amazing but I’m glad for the small population of Iceland to finally have more choices and better prices. This seems like a perfect reason for me to plan another trip to Iceland.

If you are a Costco US shopper, Costco announced last year that they would be switching from American Express to Visa for cards accepted in stores, as well as for their Citi co-branded card. This change was due to take place on April 1, 2016, but has now been pushed back to sometime this summer.

Sadly, they aren’t even very exact now about when the change will take place, just saying it will happen in June or by mid-summer (which I guess is July).

The timing of the transition is “fluid,” Richard Galanti, Costco CFO, said. “It’s between Amex and Citi — negotiating and completing the agreements to do that transition.” For customers, he said, “There won’t be any gap in the middle.”

I think the issue is in how Citi can deal with the transfer of Costco customer account data from American Express since they obviously have different card number formats and systems. In any case, it is making things very difficult for Costco customers that have an American Express card since they are now not sure if they will get their rewards from continuing spending on the Costco American Express. Plus, I have had emails from several readers with American Express cards that are about to expire and they are wondering how to proceed with getting a new American Express or not.

As you know, I’m a big fan of Costco, but this whole process has been handled very poorly, in my opinion. Perhaps even worse than this waffling on when the new Visa deal will actually start, is that no one seems to want to give any information to customers about what benefits they can expect from the new co-branded Citi Visa card. Will the cash back percentages be exactly like those of the existing American Express or better? Will there be other benefits? Is the new card actually going to be worse for Costco customers? The only good news is that once they do start accepting Visa, any Visa card can be used not just the co-branded one, and since a lot of people already have Visa cards you won’t have to sign up for the new co-branded card unless it is as good or better than the existing co-branded American Express Costco card.

If you’ve been on the fence about joining Costco, now is the perfect time to get the most out of your membership. For a short time, you can sign up for a new Costco membership through LivingSocial and get not only the Gold Star membership, but also a $20.00 Costco Cash card, as well as some really valuable coupons. Unfortunately, this deal is only good on brand new memberships in the US, or for those that had a membership that expired before October 1, 2015. Here are the full details:

Offer:

Offer good from February 3, 5:00am (Eastern Time) through February 10, 11:59pm (Pacific Time)

$55 for a 1-year Gold Star Membership

Includes a $20 Costco Cash Card

Exclusive coupons good for 3 free Kirkland Signature products:

AA Batteries 72-pack ($18.99 value)

Food Court Pizza ($9.95 value)

Organic Tortilla Chips ($4.99 value)

Plus, $25 off an order of $250 or more at Costco.com (included in coupon mailer). The Costco.com coupon is not a Costco Cash Card. It is a coupon included in the mailer with a unique coupon code and expires August 31, 2016.

Terms:

Promo codes do not apply to this deal.

Deal copy and creative must be used exactly as we have provided.

Valid for new members only. Not valid for those with a current Costco membership or for memberships that expired after October 1, 2015.

Are you having a big party to ring in the new year? Maybe you were planning on stocking your liquor cabinet and fridge with goodies from Costco? If so, you need to get over there sooner rather than later, like by Thursday afternoon. Costco is closing early Thursday, December 31, anywhere from 5 pm to 6:30 pm (depending on where you live) for New Year’s Eve. Costco stores in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, Spain, and Korea and will be CLOSED on Friday, January 1, for New Year’s Day. If you’re in Scotland, Costco will also be CLOSED on 2nd January. Costco Japan stores will have special hours from December 31 through January 1 from 9 am to 6 pm too.

So, if you’ve been putting off shopping for your New Year’s Eve party, you don’t have much longer to procrastinate. You need to get all of your last minute shopping done for your festivities or for a special New Year’s Day meal in the next couple of days. And don’t worry, Costco will be well stocked for all of the New Year’s party shoppers with lots and lots of champagne!

New Year’s Eve: Thursday, December 31:

All US stores open 10 am to 6 pm;

All Canada and Australia stores open 9 am to 5 pm;

All UK stores open 10 am to 5 pm; some stores open at 9 am check online for your store’s hours;

All Japan stores open 9 am to 6 pm.

New Year’s Day: Friday, January 1:

All US, UK, Canada, Australia, Spain, and Korea stores CLOSED;

All Japan stores open 9 am to 6 pm.

2nd January: Saturday, January 2:

All Scotland stores CLOSED;

Sunday, January 3:

All stores back to regular operating hours.

Hopefully it is clear to everyone when the stores near them are operating over the holidays. I’m not sure what the holiday hours or closures are for Mexico or Taiwan because they aren’t listed on their websites.

If you’ve been putting off all of your Christmas shopping until the very last possible moment, and if those shopping plans include Costco, you should keep their holiday schedule in mind so that you don’t get there to find the doors closed. Costco in the US, UK, Australia, Canada and Spain will be CLOSED on Christmas Day (Friday, December 25, 2015). If you’re in the UK, Costco will also be CLOSED on Boxing Day (Saturday, December 26, 2015) too. Some locations in Canada and Australia are also CLOSED on Boxing Day (check the list below). Costco stores will also be closing early on Christmas Eve (Thursday, December 24, 2015) at 5 pm or 6 pm. So, if you still need to get a gift or two, or perhaps some wrapping paper and ribbon, or maybe you need to pick up lots of goodies to make your big Christmas dinner, then you’ll need to get to Costco before they close early on Thursday!

And I’m sure lots of other people will be out doing their last minute shopping as well, so keep that in mind, and try to remain in the holiday spirit. Or maybe, what I should say, is stay in the ideal holiday spirit and not the stressed out and cranky one that you might actually be in if you’re out shopping at the last minute!

Happy Holidays from Berlin! (where I’ll be spending Christmas)

Also, if you just want to do your normal shopping, Costco will resume their normal business hours after Christmas or Boxing Day, depending on your location. For the full list of who is open when, I’ve got all the details listed below.

Christmas Eve: Thursday, December 24:

All US, Canada, Australia stores open 9 am to 5 pm;

All UK stores open 10 am to 5 pm; some stores open at 9 am check online for your store’s hours.

Christmas Day: Friday, December 25:

All US, UK, Canada, Australia, and Spain stores CLOSED.

Boxing Day: Saturday, December 26:

All UK stores CLOSED;

Australian stores in QLD and NSW open 9 am to 5 pm; ACT and VIC open 10 am to 6 pm; SA and NSW locations CLOSED;

All Canada stores open 9 am to 6 pm; except Gatineau store which is open 10 am to 6 pm; Province of Quebec stores which are open 1 pm to 6 pm; Atlantic Province stores CLOSED.

Monday, December 28:

All Australian stores open 10 am to 6 pm; except SA store open 11 am to 5 pm.